shadow, middle-aged

Artist:

Location:

Location of the winning bidder:

Full Category:

Starting Price:

$1.00

Sale Price:

$2.25

Artist Bio:

Ann Bartges lives and works in Farmington, Maine. Bartges earned her MFA from the Stamps School of Art & Design at University of Michigan in 2014, and her BFA from the NYSCC School of Art & Design at Alfred University in 2005. She is currently an Assistant Professor of Visual Arts at University of Maine Farmington. Bartges has participated in exhibitions in the United States, Denmark and Australia. She has been a resident artist at the Institut fur Alles Mogliche, Berlin; Cite Internationale des Arts, Paris; Guldagergaard International Ceramic Research Center, Skaelskor (DK); Threewalls, Chicago; and the Vermont Studio Center, Johnson.

Curator:

Joiner – Artist

Artist Statement:

In the story of Peter Pan, Peter’s shadow is severed from his body by the swift closing of the nursery window. Although seemingly lifeless without the boy, Peter’s shadow remains recognizable and intact. Mrs. Darling finds the shadow, and despite her desire to keep it from her children, she does not destroy it. Had she torn it up, like the photograph of an ex-lover, perhaps it would have erased Peter from her mind, and from the world of her children. But instead of destroying the shadow, she rolls it up neatly and hides it in a drawer. What if she had sold it on eBay instead? Shadow, middle-aged, #exstrange eBay auction is an artwork that explores the possession of a shadow in the spirit of J. M. Barrie, and advertises it as a desirable personal object/accessory. Like a fancy wig, a new (used) shadow is alluring in its adventurous extension/alteration of the body. But like a transplanted kidney, the association between the object/organ and its original body is overpowering. We may feel a sense of loss for the person who has sold their shadow, resigned to live the rest of their life without one. Is the loss of one’s shadow a loss of identity, memory, past or companion? eBay bidders are left with the task of defining the value of this loss. Bidding starts at $1.00.